The tip of the spear sliced through the air, creating a sharp whistle.
"That's fast!"
"Li Yuan's spear." Most of the students held their breath, watching as Li Yuan's spear moved so quickly that in the blink of an eye, it covered several meters.
It's important to note that Li Yuan was less than ten meters away from Teacher Xu, and the spear he held was nearly three meters long. With Li Yuan's sudden burst of speed, the spear tip was aimed directly at Teacher Xu's chest.
"Middle-level spear technique?" Zhou Qi tightened his grip on his spear, recognizing Li Yuan's move.
Spear techniques can vary greatly, but the basic forms are simply blocking, grabbing, stabbing, thrusting, slashing, and entangling. All spear techniques come from these fundamental moves.
The middle-level spear technique is considered the most basic, yet it is also the most essential. It involves a direct thrust, taking the shortest path between two points, and attacking like an arrow.
What matters here is accuracy, speed, and strength.
"Even though it's the same move, Brother Yuan's thrust could probably pierce right through me," Zhou Qi thought to himself in amazement.
In the training area,
"Direct thrust? Using the weapon and strength advantage?" Xu Bo saw through Li Yuan's intentions.
As the saying goes, "A knife is like a fierce tiger, a sword is like a swimming dragon, a staff sweeps a wide area, and a spear pierces a straight line."
A staff is shorter than a spear.
In a direct confrontation like this, the spear would definitely reach first, and Li Yuan's speed and strength were much greater than Xu Bo's explosive power at level 5.
"Boom!"
Facing Li Yuan's attack, Xu Bo didn’t dodge like before. Instead, he took the initiative, stepping forward and swinging his staff in a smooth arc, striking the spear tip with lightning speed, using Li Yuan's force against him, causing the spear to veer off course.
He avoided Li Yuan's fierce strike.
"Swish!" Li Yuan seemed to have anticipated this. At the moment the spear rebounded, he used his waist as the center and suddenly twisted his body, exerting force. The spear spun 180 degrees, slicing toward Xu Bo like an axe.
This time, they were even closer, and the speed of their attacks increased.
"Haha!" Teacher Xu suddenly laughed, seemingly predicting the outcome, and swiftly stepped back to avoid Li Yuan's fierce strike.
"How did he dodge that?" Li Yuan was surprised; the teacher's reaction speed was incredibly fast.
Before he could think further,
"Whoosh!" A blurred shadow of the staff came at him, taking advantage of the moment when Li Yuan's spear missed.
"Retreat!" Li Yuan quickly changed his footwork and stepped back while trying to block the incoming staff with his spear.
"Bang!" The weapons collided.
But Li Yuan didn't feel the impact from Xu Bo's staff; it was as if his spear got stuck to the staff.
It was uncomfortable.
Xu Bo suddenly closed in again, reducing the distance to Li Yuan, and his staff jabbed forward, quick and fierce.
"Whoosh!" Li Yuan was forced to retreat, and since the spear was a long weapon, he needed space to generate enough power.
What shocked Li Yuan was that even though his footwork was fine, he just couldn't create enough distance. Teacher Xu's staff was always perfectly positioned to strike, preventing him from fully utilizing his spear.
The staff was sometimes violent, sometimes gentle, unpredictable.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The two weapons clashed rapidly over a dozen times, and Li Yuan found himself at the edge of the silver ground.
"Boom!" Another staff shadow swept across, and Li Yuan felt a slight pain in his chest, causing him to involuntarily step back.
After stepping back a few paces, he finally stopped.
With full armor, Xu Bo's strength wasn't too overwhelming, and a single training strike from the staff couldn't really hurt Li Yuan.
"I lost." Li Yuan raised his spear, helplessly saying, "Teacher Xu, even with my speed and strength advantage, I couldn't block even twenty of your strikes."
This only showed how big the gap was in their cold weapon skills.
Around them, there was complete silence.
All the students stared wide-eyed at Li Yuan and Teacher Xu.
The confrontation was brief but intense, resembling a real battle, far beyond the skill tests they had just faced.
"You managed to block over ten of my strikes," Teacher Xu said, a rare smile appearing on his usually stern face. "Your spear technique has improved significantly since the end of last semester. I had to go all out to win against you."
All out?
Li Yuan sighed inwardly; this was just Teacher Xu using his level 5 physical strength. If their power and speed were equal, he probably wouldn’t be able to block even three strikes.
This was the difference in skill levels.
"Last semester, my spear technique and movement were both at 99%. I only broke through after the exam," Li Yuan thought. "From this, I can guess that Teacher Xu's skill level is at least level 4."
Without any other references, Li Yuan wasn't entirely sure what the specific differences were between level 1, level 2, and level 3.
But he could vaguely judge that among his classmates, only a few like Wan Xiao had reached level 2 in cold weapon skills.
At the same time, Li Yuan was clear about one thing.
If his spear technique and movement improved, it would definitely show up in the panel data.
Tick-tock!
On the screen at the back of the classroom, Li Yuan's martial arts skill score appeared—"365 points."
"That's so high?"
"Over 360 points!" Zhou Qi's eyes lit up.
"This is the level of the college entrance exam. Li Yuan is only in his third year, and his martial arts skill score has increased so much since last semester?"
"This kind of individual score is probably among the best in the city."
"By the time of the entrance exam, Li Yuan might even compete for the top martial arts score in the city."
"Li Yuan will definitely get into a martial arts university."
"If only my spear skills were as good as Li Yuan's..."
"Someone wake him up if he’s daydreaming."
The students were both shocked and envious, whispering among themselves.
If Li Yuan had only scored 320 or 330 points, some of the students might have felt jealous, as the gap wouldn’t be too outrageous.
But the difference was too big; most people could only admire him.
Most were self-aware; why envy someone clearly on a different level?
Moreover, martial arts skills and physical constitution are different.
If someone comes from a wealthy family, they could have personal nutritionists, therapists, and tailored training plans, and if they awaken their martial spirit, it’s possible to raise their physical constitution to level 7 or higher during their third year.
But improving martial arts skills can’t just be bought with money.
...
As Li Yuan's assessment ended, the time had reached 5:30 PM.
"Alright."
"From today's test, most students have been working hard since entering their third year," Teacher Xu's voice returned to its usual stern tone. "But some students have not only failed to progress but have regressed."
"You are now third-year students. The college entrance exam may not determine your fate, but it is at least a significant opportunity in your life... I will come again the day after tomorrow to supervise your martial arts training. Class dismissed." Teacher Xu turned to leave.
Then he added, "Li Yuan, Wan Xiao, come to my office."
Many students, already exhausted from practice, immediately scattered.
Several boys gulped down water while rushing to the cafeteria to grab a seat.
Some girls discussed heading to the restroom first.
"Brother Yuan, I'll go with Yan Zhou and the others to the cafeteria to save you a seat! I'll also grab you a nutritious meal," Zhou Qi called out.
"Old Zhou, Brother Yuan's meal needs to be two portions," a strong boy named Yan Zhou laughed, waving at Li Yuan. "Brother Yuan, leave the food to us; you hurry to the office."
"Thanks, I'll transfer you the money later," Li Yuan replied with a smile.
"No need, I didn’t pay you for breakfast the last few times you helped me, so tonight's dinner is on me," Yan Zhou said with a grin.
Li Yuan smiled back.
Besides Zhou Qi, he had a few other good friends in the class.
"Li Yuan, let's go." The tall Wan Xiao called out to Li Yuan. "What does Teacher Xu want with us?"
"He probably wants to move you to the Elite Class," Li Yuan joked.
As for why he was called, Li Yuan had his suspicions but couldn't confirm them yet.
(End of Chapter)